06/02/2022
Survey Tip of the Week: Pain
The pain management F-tag 697 states that a facility must ensure that pain management is provided to residents who require such services, consistent with professional standards of practice, the comprehensive person-centered care plan, and the residents’ goals and preferences. The Long-Term Care Survey Process (LTCSP) instructs surveyors to interview residents about their pain. The questions outlined in the LTCSP resident interview pathway includes:
Do you have any pain or discomfort?
- Where is your pain?
- How often do you have pain?
- What does the facility do to manage your pain (e.g. hot or cold packs, pain medications)?
- Were you involved in the management of your pain?
- Is your pain relieved?
- For opioid use: What did the facility try before starting that medication?
- Does the pain prevent you from attending activities or doing other things you would like to do?
- Do you receive pain medications when needed such as before therapy or treatment?
- Do you receive pain medications in a timely manner when requested?
- Do you have any side effects (e.g., constipation or dizziness) related to your pain medications and are they addressed?
For newly admitted residents, surveyors will determine if the facility developed and implemented a baseline care plan within 48 hours of admission that included the minimum healthcare information necessary to properly care for the immediate needs of the resident.
Additional surveyor guidance on pain management can be found in the Pain Recognition and Management Critical Element Pathway. LeadingAge Ohio encourages facilities to utilize the LTC Survey Pathways to monitor for compliance. The survey pathways can be found on the CMS Nursing Home webpage, under the download section, and within the zip file called LTC Survey Pathways.
For more information about the citations occurring in Ohio, please join us on the monthly STAT: Survey Tips and Tactics call. Register now for the June 8 call at 10:00AM.
LeadingAge Ohio is sharing tips to assist members during the survey process. Send questions you’d like addressed in future Tips of the Week to Stephanie DeWees at sdewees@leadingageohio.org.
